Apparatus for mounting building panels

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for mounting building panels, wherein a plurality of building panels may be raised alongside a building structure and then separately mounted on the structure to form a wall thereof, which apparatus requires a reduced number of men and a much safer operation.

United States Patent [19] Shannon, Jr.

[ Dec. 31, 1974 APPARATUS FOR MOUNTING BUILDING PANELS Inventor: JosephR. Shannon, Jr., PO. Box

40006, Houston, Tex. 77040 Filed: Oct. 4, 1973 App]. No.: 403,511

Related US. Application Data Division of Ser. No. 297,996, Oct. 16,1972, Pat No. 3,791,094.

US. Cl. 214/1 H Int. Cl. B66c 1/00 Field of Search 214/1 H [56]References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 70,334 12/1949 Denmark214/1 H 897,530 11/1953 Gemiany 214/1 H Primary Examiner-Stanley l-l.Tollberg [57] ABSTRACT An apparatus for mounting building panels,wherein a plurality of building panels may be raised alongside abuilding structure and then separately mounted on the structure to forma wall thereof, which apparatus requires a reduced number of men and amuch safer op eration.

9 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEI] DEBS] 1974 SHEET 10F 2 I APPARATUSFOR MOUNTING BUILDING PANELS CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONSThis application is a divisional application of my copending patentapplication Ser. No. 297,996, filed Oct. 16, 1972 which issued onFebruary 12, 1974 as United States Patent No. 3,791,094.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The field of this invention is apparatus formounting building panels.

Building panels, particularly corrugated asbestos cement sheets orpanels, are relatively heavy and cumbersome to handle and install on abuilding framework or other structure. When making a large commercial orindustrial building it is usually necessary to lift such panels off theground level and install them at second, third or even higher tiers toform the complete walls. I-Ieretofore, a conventional scaffoldingsuspended by ropes from the building structure has been employed, thepanels were left on the ground and manually lifted one at a time by arope and a well wheel pulley mounted on the building. The pulley had tobe moved frequently and a man was required at that point. Also, forlifting each panel from the ground to the scaffolding, two men wererequired on the ground as well as two men on the scaffolding. Becauseeach panel was raised on the outside of the scaffolding, the scaffoldinghad to be left open to receive each panel, so that there was no safetyrail to keep the men on the scaffolding from falling, and of course, asthe scaffolding was raised to higher elevations for the upper tiers ofpanels, the danger to the men on the scaffolding increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates a new andimproved apparatus for mounting building panels which reduces themanpower required and improves the efficiency and safety of operation. Aplurality of panels are raised alongside a building structure to anelevation at which the panels are to be mounted, and then the panels aretransferred and mounted separately to form a wall of the building. Theapparatus for elevating and transferring the panels is supported andmoved independently of the building and safety rails are provided forthe workmen.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an elevation, partly insection illustrating apparatus of this invention, with the apparatussupported at an elevation for the mounting of panels on a buildingstructure;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 1, with certain portionsomitted for illustration;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. I, but illustrating the apparatus withone of the panels in position for mounting on the building structure;and

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating the substantially complete mounting of oneof the panels on the building structure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT In the drawings, the letter Adesignates generally the apparatus of this invention which is adapted tobe elevated and moved horizontally with a conventional mobile hoistingdevice, a portion of which is illustrated and is designated with theletter M. As will be explained in detail, the apparatus A is adapted tolift a plurality of building panels to an elevation alongside aframework or building structure B for the mounting of such panels Pseparately by a man C who is also raised with the apparatus A.

Considering the apparatus A more in detail, such apparatus includes aplatform F for receiving the man C and the panels P thereon. Theplatform F may be made in a suitable manner so long as it has adequatestrength for hoisting same with the mobile hoisting mechanism M and forsupporting the load thereon.

As illustrated in the drawings, the platform F includes longitudinallyextending channel members 10 and end channel members 11, all of whichare welded together or otherwise secured to form a rectangular base fora platform grill 12 made of expanded metal, screen or other suitablesupporting material. The grill 12 is welded or otherwise secured to therectangular basea provided by the longitudinal platform members 10 andend members 11.

A pair of hollow tubes 14, each of which is preferably rectangular inshape and is provided with a rectangular shaped internal opening 14a,are welded or are otherwise secured to the longitudinal platform members10 and they are spaced apart a distance equal to the spacing of the forklift fingers 15 or similar lifting members which are a part of thehoisting and moving mechanism M. The fingers 15 are adapted to beinserted and removed from the open ends of the openings 14a asillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Such fingers 15 are illustrated as attached to a supporting plate 17 andoperating arms 18, a portion of which is illustrated, which extend to avehicle of known construction which has wheels for rolling movement onthe ground and which have several power means for moving the vehicle onthe ground and for also raising and lowering the plate 17 with thefingers 15 to thereby raise and lower the apparatus A with respect tobuilding structure B and the ground level therebelow, as will be moreevident hereinafter.

To lock each of the fingers 15 in each of the fingerreceiving tubes 14,a plurality of locking bolts 20 are mounted, each with a nut 21 that iswelded or otherwise secured to the side of the tube 14 so that the bolts20 can be threaded through each nut therewith and a suitable opening inthe wall of the tube 14 for engagement with one of the fingers 15. Whena plurality of such bolts 20 are tightened so that they clamp each ofthe fingers 15 in the tubes 14, it will be appreciated that the entireapparatus A is prevented from shifting off of the fingers 15 until suchbolts 20 have been unthreaded and released from engagement with thefingers 15.

The platform F is provided with safety rails 25 at the outerlongitudinal side of the platform and at a height sufficient to preventthe man C from inadvertently falling from the platform when theapparatus A is in an elevated position above ground level. Also, similarsafety rails 26 are provided at each end of the platform F at a heightwhich is substantially the same as the height of the rails 25 so thatthe man or men C are protected from falling from the platform F on atleast the three sides of the platform F. The inner side of the platformwhich is adjacent to the building structure B does not need a permanentsafety rail since it is disposed very close to the building structure B,although a safety rail may be utilized in some instances, or a temporarysafety line may be extended from the end rails 26 out of an abundance ofcaution in some situations. The safety rails and 26 are preferablysupported by vertical angle iron members 27 at each of the corners, eachof which is welded to the platform F in the preferred form of theinvention.

Also, a plurality of toe plates 30 and 31 are welded or otherwisesecured to the platform F by any suitable connecting means so as toprovide a stop or a warning for the man or men C so that they will knowthat they are at the edge of the platform F in the event they areworking and not looking downwardly as they move around on the platform.

The apparatus A also includes a vertical support post or column which ispreferably made in two or more sections and is releasably joinedtogether by a coupling 41 so that the post 40 can be disassembled intorelatively small lengths for transportation to and from each job site.The lower end of the column 40 is preferably rotatably mounted in atubular support 42 which is welded or is otherwise secured to and formsa part of platform F. The bottom of 42a of the tubular support 42 isclosed so that the lower end of column or post 40 rests thereon or onany other suitable base within the column supporting member 42.

A substantially horizontal boom 45 which is formed with at least onelower rail 45a is preferably releasably mounted to the upper end of thepost or column 40 by means of releasable bolts 45b which extend througha plate 45c which is a part of the boom 45 and another plate 40a whichis welded or is otherwise secured to the post 40 near its upper end.

The boom track 45a is adapted to receive wheels on a trolley 51 so thatthe trolley 51 may move horizontally on such boom 45. The wheels 50 areconfined by any suitable means (not shown) so that they cannot shift offof the track 45a as they move along the boom 45. A slight lip on thetrack 45a will provide such restriction to movement of the wheels 50laterally off of the track 45a, or the trolley 51 may be provided with acorresponding set of wheels 50 to those shown but on the opposite sideof the boom 45 so that they are not visible in FIG. 1 and they wouldmove on a track similar to 45a, thereby preventing any lateral shiftingof the trolley 51.

The trolley 51 has an upper pulley 52 mounted therewith and it carriesan operating line or cable 53 over it and such line or cable 53 isconnected to a travelling block or pulley 54 in the preferred form ofthe invention. The end of the line 53 indicated at 53a is preferablyfree so that it may be grasped by the man C to effect a raising andlifting of one of the panels P. The other end of the line 53b has a hook55 or other suitable means (FIG. 1) for engaging the lower edge of thepanel P which is to be moved.

To facilitate the handling of each panel P as it is moved from a stackedposition on the platform F to a position for mounting on the buildingstructure P, the operator C preferably has a special tool T which has along handle having its lower end 60a which is grasped by the operator Cand its upper end 60b which is welded or is otherwise secured to a pipeor tubular member 61. The pipe or tubular member 61 is formed with anotched 61a sufficiently large to slide over the upper end of the panelP. The line 53 passes through a portion of the pipe 61 or to one side ofit.

Although the building structure B may be formed in any suitable mannerso long as it is capable of receiving the panels P, as illustrated inthe drawings, the building structure B includes a plurality ofhorizontally extending angle iron members of known construction whichare mounted to a vertically extending member 71, a portion of which isschematically illustrated in the drawings. It will be understood thatthe invention is not limited to the mounting of the panels P upon anyparticular kind of building structure, and the invention is describedherein with respect to the building structure B solely for illustrativepurposes. It should also be understood that the panels P are preferablyand are normally of the asbestos cement type which are extremely heavyand difficult for one man to handle. A suitable support block ispreferably provided on the platform grill 12 for supporting the panels Pso that they are not damaged and may be more readily engaged by the hook55 to pick them up for moving same into position adjacent the buildingB.

In using the apparatus of this invention, the apparatus A is lowered toground level, or near ground level, by lowering the fingers 15 of thehoisting unit M. A plurality of the panels P are then loaded into theplatform and are disposed on the support 75, assuming such support isutilized on the platform F. The panels P are positioned substantiallyvertically to the outside of the platform F and they are preferablydisposed at an angle so that they lean against the column or supportpost 40 as best seen in FIGS. 1 and 3.

Usually there are two men or operators C which then ride up with theapparatus A and they may steady the panels P during the lifting orhoisting of the apparatus A to the desired elevation for the beginningof the mounting of the panels P to the building structure B. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, the apparatus A has been raised to a point abovea tier of panels P which have already been attached to the buildingstructure P. The operator then engages the hook 55 below the panel Pwhich is closest to him, and he positions the special handling tool Twith the notch 61a over the upper end of the panel P. The operator thushas control of the panel P at the upper and lower ends and he may raisethe panel P by pulling downwardly on the end 53a of the cable or line53.

After the panel P has been raised upwardly by the operator pullingdownwardly on the line 53 at the end 53a, the operator turns the panel P180 so as to position the panel between him and the building structure Bso that it assumes the position generally shown in FIG. 3. The movementof the panel P horizontally or laterally is accomplished by the trolley51 moving laterally on the boom 45. Such urging is accomplished by theoperator pulling on the tool T and also on the line 53. Also, if anadditional operator is used on the apparatus A, he may assist inhandling the panel P as it is moved from its stacked position to theposition for attaching to the building structure B.

When the panel P has been moved to the position shown in FIG. 3, afastener of known construction is forced through the panel P or apreviously drilled hole therein and into one of the angle iron members70 of the building structure B so as to initially attach the panel P tothe building structure B. Thereafter, the hook 55 may be released andalso the tool T may be released and additional fasteners 80 such asshown in FIG. 4 may then be inserted at the appropriate locations forconnecting the panel P to the building structure members 70. The last oruppermost part of the panel P is not normally fastened to the member 70adjacent thereto until the next panel thereabove has been positionedover it so that there is an overlapping connection such as shown at thebottom of panel P at the connector or fastener 80' in FIG. 4.

During the fastening of the panel P, the apparatus A may be raised tofacilitate the inserting of the fasteners 80 at the various heightswhich might not otherwise be reached conveniently by the men C in theapparatus A.

It is to be noted that the boom 45 extends inwardly past the verticalmember 71, so it is assumed that the vertical member 71 is positionedwith vertical spaces therebetween, which is usually the case. In otherwords, there is ample room for the boom 45 to extend into the buildingstructure as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3. However, the boom structurecan be shorter in length and can terminate at the edge of the buildingstructure B if the building structure B is so made that the boom 45cannot extend into the space between the vertical support 71.

The apparatus A is moved horizontally by moving the mobile support andhoisting means M horizontally when it is desired to move the apparatus Afor the positioning of the next panel P on the building structure B. Insome instances, several panels P may be installed on the buildingstructure B without horizontally or laterally moving the apparatus A,but when that does be come necessary, the entire apparatus A may bemoved without lowering it back to the ground level, or if moreconvenient, the apparatus A may be lowered back to the ground level andthen moved horizontally to locate the apparatus A for the positioning ofthe next panel P in the same manner as heretofore described with thefirst panel P. All of the panels P are thus mounted on the buildingstructure B and when the supply panels P on the apparatus A has thusbeen exhausted, the apparatus A is lowered back to the ground level andanother group of panels P are mounted on the platform F and theprocedure is repeated.

Although this invention has been heretofore described and illustrated inthe drawings with each panel P being rotated 180 when picked-up from thestacked position and moved to the mounting position, the invention isnot limited thereto. Thus, instead of engaging the tool T with thehandle 60 thereof inwardly of the panel P as shown in FIG. 1, theoperator C may engage the tool T so that the handle 60 is outwardly ofthe particular panel P which is to be moved. This normally requires twooperators C so that one of the operators can hold the panel P spacedfrom the other stacked panels P so as to provide a space outwardly ofthe panel P which is to be picked up for thereby receiving the handle 60of the tool T. When the handle 60 is thus outwardly disposed withrespect to the panel P, the operator simply moves the panel P inwardlywithout turning or rotating same so that the tool T ends up in the sameposition as shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings. It should be noted that thehook 55 is also preferably disposed so that it faces inwardly as shownin FIG. 3, when initially engaged in the position of FIG. 1 so as tofacilitate the removal of the hook 55 after the panel P has beenfastened to the building structure B.

The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention areillustrative and explanatory thereof, and various changes in the size,shape, and materials as well as in the details of the illustratedconstruction may be made without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for mounting building panels on a building structure,comprising:

a platform adapted to receive at least one man thereon and a pluralityof building panels;

panel transferring means mounted on said platform and movable therewithfor raising the panels separately off of the platform and for laterallymoving the raised panel relative to said platform for positioning samefor mounting on a building structure; and

means for lifting said platform and said panel transferring meanstogether from a lower level to an elevated position.

2. The structure set forth in claim 1, wherein said panel transferringmeans includes:

means for raising each panel off of the platform; and

means for moving each panel substantially horizontally while in theraised position.

3. The structure set forth in claim 1, wherein said panel transferringmeans includes:

a substantially vertical post, at least a portion of which is rotatable;

a boom secured to the upper end of said post and extending substantiallyhorizontally therefrom;

a movable trolley mounted on said boom for movements thereonsubstantially horizontally;

a hoisting line operably mounted with said trolley for horizontalmovements therewith and for independent vertical movementsfor hoistingeach of the panels by engaging the bottom portion of the panel; and

tool means for securing the upper portion of panel,

said tool means operably connected with said hoisting line.

4. The apparatus set forth in claim 1, including:

means for engaging said platform with a hoisting means for raising sameupwardly from ground level.

5. The apparatus set forth in claim 1, including:

mobile hoisting means independent of said platform and adapted tooperate at ground level and having vertically movable support fingerstherewith; and

means on said platform for receiving said support fingers for raisingand lowering said platform.

6. The structure set forth in claim 1, including:

safety rails and toe plates on at least three sides of said platform anddisposed high enough to provide a barrier for preventing the man frominadvertently stepping or slipping off from said platform.

7. The structure set forth in claim 1, wherein said panel transferringmeans includes:

a manually operated panel engaging tool for engaging the upper portionof each panel for controlling the position thereof as it is movedlaterally.

8. The structure set forth in claim 7, wherein said panel engaging toolincludes:

a tubular member having a slot formed therein, said slot adapted toreceive the upper portion of the panel; and

a handle mounted with said tubular member for permitting manualpositioning of the raised panel.

9. The structure of claim 3, further including:

hook means with said hoisting line for releasably engaging the bottomportion of the panel for vertical hoisting of the same.

1. An apparatus for mounting building panels on a building structure,comprising: a platform adapted to receive at least one man thereon and aplurality of building panels; panel transferring means mounted on saidplatform and movable therewith for raising the panels separately off ofthe platform and for laterally moving the raised panel relative to saidplatform for positioning same for mounting on a building structure; andmeans for lifting said platform and said panel transferring meanstogether from a lower level to an elevated position.
 2. The structureset forth in claim 1, wherein said panel transferring means includes:means for raising each panel off of the platform; and means for movingeach panel substantially horizontally while in the raised position. 3.The structure set forth in claim 1, wherein said panel transferringmeans includes: a substantially vertical post, at least a portion ofwhich is rotatable; a boom secured to the upper end of said post andextending substantially horizontally therefrom; a movable trolleymounted on said boom for movements thereon substantially horizontally; ahoisting line operably mounted with said trolley for horizontalmovements therewith and for independent vertical movements for hoistingeach of the panels by engaging the bottom portion of the panel; and toolmeans for securing the upper portion of panel, said tool means operablyconnected with said hoisting line.
 4. The apparatus set forth in claim1, including: means for engaging said platform with a hoisting means forraising same upwardly from ground level.
 5. The apparatus set forth inclaim 1, including: mobile hoisting means independent of said platformand adapted to operate at ground level and having vertically movablesupport fingers therewith; and means on said platform for receiving saidsupport fingerS for raising and lowering said platform.
 6. The structureset forth in claim 1, including: safety rails and toe plates on at leastthree sides of said platform and disposed high enough to provide abarrier for preventing the man from inadvertently stepping or slippingoff from said platform.
 7. The structure set forth in claim 1, whereinsaid panel transferring means includes: a manually operated panelengaging tool for engaging the upper portion of each panel forcontrolling the position thereof as it is moved laterally.
 8. Thestructure set forth in claim 7, wherein said panel engaging toolincludes: a tubular member having a slot formed therein, said slotadapted to receive the upper portion of the panel; and a handle mountedwith said tubular member for permitting manual positioning of the raisedpanel.
 9. The structure of claim 3, further including: hook means withsaid hoisting line for releasably engaging the bottom portion of thepanel for vertical hoisting of the same.